City golf courses to remain open in 2019

Despite a particularly rainy year, the fate of the city’s four public golf courses remains in question, according to a Wisconsin State Journalupdate.

The good news for golfers is that the courses will remain open this year. However, if the courses, which are supposed to be self-sufficient, continue to bleed money, their future still hangs in the balance.

Weather contributed to a loss of about $348,000 in course revenues in 2018, and the largest of them all, 36-hole Yahara Hills, was only open 116 of a typical 244-day season. Weather is far from the only reason for the losses, notes Eric Knepp, Madison Parks Division superintendent. The four courses — Yahara, Odana, Glenway, and Monona — have not been able to pull their weight for years.

Meanwhile, the owners of the Meadows of Six Mile Creek in Waunakee closed Windwood Country Club, Watertown’s only public golf course, for good, according to a story in the Wisconsin State Journal. Reportedly, Madison Golf Development, which owned both courses, had been trying to sell the Watertown club, including an 18-hole golf course and banquet facility, for a while. It remains for sale. Meanwhile, Madison Golf Development will focus on Six Mile Creek.